U21s aiming to take the sting out of Bees

5 November 2015

U21s taking on Brentford at Adams Park

Our Under-21 side are aiming to make their mark on the Under-21 Premier League Cup when they meet Brentford at Adams Park on Friday.

As a Category 1 Academy, this will be our first fixture in this year’s knock-out tournament; however the Category 2 Bees went away to West London rivals QPR and grabbed a 2-1 victory in the Second Qualifying Round.

In addition for Brentford, this is their first time they have entered a team into the nationwide knock-out competition and they will need to get the better of Martin Kuhl’s charges if they hope to reach the last 16.

Despite the short history of the competition, it is a tournament that we have fared well in so far. The young Royals were crowned Under-21 Premier League Cup champions in its inaugural season in 2013/14, beating Man City over two legs in the final.

We were one step away from another final last year, but Blackburn Rovers were 2-1 winners after-extra-time in Lancashire and set up a date with eventual-winners Southampton.

In league competition, our squad currently lie third in the Barclays Under-21 Premier League table – and with games in hand over Sunderland and Tottenham, the Royals could potentially go top. They most recently faced Norwich at Madejski Stadium, and earned a 2-0 win thanks to goals by Andrija Novakovich and Sammi Fridjonsson.

This fixture kicks off at 1pm; however it is being played behind closed doors and is not open to the public. For a full Under-21 fixtures & results list for the 2015/16 season, including which games are being played at Madejski Stadium, click here.